SuperCoach AFL 2026 Draft Rankings: Experts name Top 40 as pre-season begins
Pre-season is underway which means it’s time to rank the best SuperCoach Draft picks for next season. See the expert consensus No.1 plus full draft lists.
Start planning your 2026 SuperCoach Draft assault here.
Nailing your draft is all about planning ahead, and every piece of research you do now can give you the edge on draft day. AFL Clubs have been on the track for weeks now, and the SuperCoach experts are already thinking about next season.
FUTURE FOCUS: EXPERT 2026 KEEPER LEAGUE RANKINGS
Who would they take at No.1 if a draft was held today? Who has jumped up the rankings from last season and who has slid out of calculations ... perhaps to become a late round bargain?
We surveyed five experts and compiled the results into one ultimate consensus list.
Put any festive season down time to good use by reading up on the strategy and assessing the full top 40 from each of our experts below.
Check back over pre-season for updated rankings by position as round 1 approaches.
ALEXIE ‘LEKDOG’ BEOVICH
Marcus Bontempelli, the King of SuperCoach, will be the No.1 ranked player on all of my draft boards until someone can remove him from his throne.
He is joined in the top five by Zak Butters, Nick Daicos, Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera and Josh Dunkley. All elite SuperCoach scorers, all bankable first round selections.
My Top 40 is dominated by midfielders and ruckmen but it is nice to see a couple of forwards feature including Harry Sheezel, Sam Flanders and Izak Rankine.
The early projections tell me a few things:
1. Load up on uber-midfielders.
2. You can get a good ruckman deep in drafts.
3. Forwards are hard to come by but don’t chase anything but the best early.
4. There are fewer high-end defenders than previous seasons, but there will be plenty of value in the middle of drafts.
5. Finally, the most important thing to remember is this: total points tell the true story and finding consistent players should put you in a position to compete for the flag in your league.
AL PATON
Tristan Xerri’s finish to 2025 (back-to-back scores in the 180s) and an extremely friendly fixture put him in pole position to top the SuperCoach scoresheet in 2026, and a mouth-watering start has Zak Butters at No.2. But you wouldn’t be upset if you could snap up the Bont with pick 3.
Last season 46 players averaged 100-plus in SuperCoach including eight rucks and just two forwards – and neither of those are FWD eligible next year. In draft that puts a huge premium on any FWDs who could push close to the 100 mark, and we have some very interesting options that I rate highly – although I would need to use a very early pick to get Sam Flanders before Dossy swoops.
I’d be happy with Matt Rowell or Finn Callaghan at M1 – you will have to go early on those two, but you will likely be able to snare another elite mid much later in the draft in the form of Luke Davies-Uniacke. I honestly don’t know what happened to him last year (97 av) but 2026 is massive for the Roos and Al Clarkson, and LDU did average 122.5 over the last month of the season.
I’m buying Errol Gulden stocks, Dayne Zorko will have to be carried out of SuperCoach premium club in a coffin and I’m still out on Jason Horne-Francis after he cursed my classic team last year. The potential is huge, but I want to see a more attractive role – as a pure MID there are still plenty in front of him.
HAYDN ‘DOS’ KENNY
Tristan Xerri and Brodie Grundy will be monstrous again in 2026. It’s early, and we haven’t seen the AFL’s recent rule changes in action. But we tend to overreact to minor adjustments, and I think both will be fighting it out for the mantle as the No.1 SuperCoach scorer.
Rucks are typically the most consistent and dominant ceiling scorers in SuperCoach, and I want one of the big dogs early in my draft leagues – especially if captains are on. Max Gawn drops slightly for me in a new-look rebuilding Dees, but I’d still snap him up in a heartbeat in the top five.
Some may raise an eyebrow at Luke Jackson in the top 10, but I strongly believe he has the potential to be the number one scorer in all of SuperCoach, and should still dominate even if alongside Sean Darcy (but preferably not!).
Outside of the rucks, the usual suspects are up the top-end, and Bont will continue to do Bont things. I’ll be hoping to square away one of Harry Sheezel or Sam Flanders as the stand out FWD options that could be 10-15 points better than the next best at that position.
It will be interesting just how high Flanders goes come March given he’ll be in most Classic teams, but I’ll be keen to invest no matter the cost. Am I too high on Harley Reid as a Weagles nuffy? Maybe. But maybe I’m 40 spots too low…
PATCH
If you’re lucky enough to have pick 1 in your draft for next season, congrats on owning Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera. The frontrunner for the 2026 No.1 scoring position is available in defence, which rockets him to the top of my way too early rankings, ahead of the likes of Zak Butters in a contract year and Nick Daicos desperate for a Brownlow.
After predicting (and painfully missing) a Max Gawn fade last year I won’t be making the same mistake this season, although I still have Xerri slightly ahead purely Gawn being more likely to miss due to old man injuries than young man Tristan.
Harry Sheezel as a forward could go as high as pick 2 in some drafts and I wouldn’t be mad about it, but if you’re in a captains league and Clarko keeps sending him to half-forward it could hurt you.
I‘m sceptical Brodie Grundy does exactly what he did last year again because it was such a flash in the pan but I can’t leave him out of the top 10... I actually really love Luke Jackson as a pick this year, even losing DPP. If he regains it as a forward, or even as a midfielder, it could make a nice addition to your side.
The Lions bringing in yet another gun midfielder in Dan Annable on top of their two Ashcrofts has me fading the whole lot of them a little bit purely from uncertainty over which one(s?) of them will pop. Sam Flanders feels a bit nervy – if the promised midfield time becomes apparent he could go higher but for now I’m keeping him a bit further down, while I’m backing Zach Merrett and Patrick Cripps in much higher than some but all in all there’s very little to split the midfielders at this stage unless you’ve dissected the fixture (which I have not yet).
I took Lachie Neale at pick 1 last year and was burned beyond belief. Pick 34 is too low but I don’t want a bar of him this season.
I think Jaspa Fletcher is one of the best value defender options this season, and Kozzie Pickett and Jared Rivers could become near full-time midfielders looking at the Demons’ outs over the trade period – speaking of, Clayton Oliver is 41st on my list after tearing up the pre-season track.
DAN BATTEN
I finally decided to listen to some SuperCoach draft aficionados ahead of last season and their message was simple: Points are king. That advice to overlook top-ranked defenders and forwards in favour of midfielders and rucks led to an SC draft flag. It is why I have some forwards and defenders lower than they may be drafted on the night, as getting as many 110-plus operators in your side is key. Marcus Bontempelli is my No.1 pick, but the 2-8 bracket is difficult to predict – especially with the changing ruck and last disposal rules.
Originally published as SuperCoach AFL 2026 Draft Rankings: Experts name Top 40 as pre-season begins
